Volume 4 (No 1-2)

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Browsing Volume 4 (No 1-2) by Subject "children rights"
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    Children’s deprivation of liberty as a tool of immigration and national security control in Europe? Unlocking captured childhoods by means of child-centred strategies and non-custodial solutions
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Altafin, Chiara ; Storbeck, Majsa ; Ninnin, Noémie ; Balnaves, Hugo ; Voziki, Vassia
    This article explores children’s detention on immigration or national security grounds as affected by European states’ contemporary security rationale neglecting children’s rights. Attention is given to how non-custodial solutions and child-centred strategies could avoid the systemic deprivation of liberty for these reasons. In acknowledging the range of contemporary threats against the right to liberty and security of children, it is crucial to investigate the link between detention and security narratives, as children – a particularly vulnerable group – are affected disproportionately. The focus is placed on the situations in The Netherlands, France, Greece, Ireland and Cyprus. Concluding remarks are based on the case studies and the regional perspective taken beyond these cases, to draw arguments for law and policy changes at both levels. Key words: children’s rights; migration; national security; repatriation; detention; security rationale
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    Editorial of special focus: Selected developments in the area of children deprived of liberty
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Steimann, Imke ; Loader, Reina-Marie ; Krishan, Manu
    The UN Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty (2019) unequivocally regards the detention of children as a form of structural violence. It not only leaves children stigmatised and marginalised for life, but also entirely forgotten by those adults who, in fact, should be protecting them. Despite irrefutable evidence of the harm detention inflicts on the physical and mental well-being of children, they continue to be detained in conditions that often leave them vulnerable to abuse and other severe human rights violations. This in turn has a severely negative impact on their development, stability and future prospects. Childhood encompasses the formative years of a human being and constitutes a period during which the personality of children is moulded and their ability to form emotional relationships defined. Depriving children of liberty during these crucially important years constitutes an enormous injustice. Yet, it remains one of the most overlooked violations of children’s rights.
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    Migrant children and adolescents from North Central America towards Mexico and their deprivation of liberty
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Comas, Rocío ; Morales, Natalia ; Bottazzi, Florencia ; Agredo, Valentina ; Orué, María José
    A growing number of migrant children and adolescents, mainly from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, embark on a perilous journey to Mexico. This article intends to provide detailed information on and an analysis of Mexico as the receiving, issuing, transiting and returning country. The intention, in turn, is to analyse the countries of North Central America, as the main countries of issuance, transit and return of migrants to and from Mexico. The situation of migrant children and adolescents reveals the violation of international and regional legislation on the protection of children’s human rights. The migration process itself involves multiple risks to the security and integrity of migrant children, whose rights are affected at each stage of the process. In this regard, the data collected reflects the deprivation of the freedom of migrant children and adolescents in Mexico, while noting that this situation proves to be the focal point of all other rights violations that occur in the migration context. The analysis includes the perspectives gathered from international and regional standards for the protection of their rights. The article also examines conceptual definitions used in connection with migrant children in light of their vulnerability and the countries’ national context. To address the specific situation of children, the article reviews each country’s legislation, as well as outlines the migration flows taking place, in light of the causes identified as a general framework for the migration phenomenon. The article is informed by information gathered through the analysis of conventions, judgments, laws, theoretical documents, thematic reports as well as statistical analysis gathered from reports and surveys by human rights organisations. Finally, the conclusion considers this information alongside existing legal provisions so as to make recommendations aimed at better protecting migrant children and to prevent the violation of their fundamental rights. Key words: children and adolescents; migration; North Central American countries; Mexico; deprivation of liberty; international human rights law
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    Migration related detention of children in Southern Africa: Developments in Angola, Malawi and South Africa
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Rono, Carolyne ; Vries, Kelvin ; Sibanda, Opal ; Gadisa, Girma
    This article examines the laws and practices in Angola, Malawi and South Africa regarding the migration-related detention of children in light of international human rights standards. Detaining a migrant child is in conflict with article 37(b) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, namely, that detention of a child should be used as a the measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate time, the principle of the best interests of the child and the right to development. At the African Union level, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child serves as the primary human rights instrument that comprehensively guarantees children’s rights. The countries in the case study have ratified both CRC and the African Children’s Charter. Nevertheless, children are deprived of liberty in Southern Africa, with Malawi serving as a transit country and South Africa and Angola mostly as destination countries. While Angola and Malawi lack adequate legal and effective protection of migrant children, South Africa has put in place robust legal guarantees, but in practice migrant children are nevertheless detained. Thus, the article suggests that these countries need to adopt and implement comprehensive child protection policies including alternatives to detention with a view to ensuring improved respect for children’s rights. Furthermore, it emphasises the need for enhancing regional cooperation to curb the problems that children are facing in relation to migration and beyond. Most importantly, states must show the political will not only to adopt protective laws but also to effectively implement these laws in order to create a safer world for children. Key words: children; migration; detention; liberty; Southern Africa
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    Overview of measures applied to children in conflict with law in post-Soviet countries: non-custodial measures and diversion programmes
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Abuladze, Salome ; Koltsova, Maria ; Arushanyan, Anna ; Askarbekov, Aibek ; Muradyan, Mariam
    This article seeks to identify where non-custodial measures are applied in the post-Soviet space and where, in particular, diversion is used as a non-custodial measure in child justice systems. To this end, the article reviews the legal contexts and practices of 12 post-Soviet countries based on existing theoretical frameworks. As such, the article first defines the goals and needs of applying non-custodial measures to children in conflict with the law. Second, it addresses definitions, principles and the types of diversion directing children away from criminal justice proceedings. An analysis of the best practices in the region revealed that only two of the countries reviewed (Georgia and Kyrgyzstan) apply diversion programmes. Consequently, the article specifically considers these diversion programmes according to their general principles, criteria and the type of diversion applied. Given the fact that children in the regions are often detained in various types of facilities, mostly for rehabilitation purposes, the article highlights the serious need for post-Soviet states to urgently develop non-custodial measures in order to divert children away from the criminal justice system. Key words: children; non-custodial; diversion; deprivation; justice
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    Two sides of the same coin: Contradictory legal and administrative practices towards children in immigration detention centres in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Yutthaworakool, Saittawut ; Pokharel, Shraddha ; Try, Sophea
    The scale of migration among Asian countries has increased over the decades. Children are also part of this migratory flow as they travel either alone or with their parents. Since much of the migration occurs through extra-legal routes, many migrants and their children face a multitude of legal problems, including incarceration. The number of children deprived of liberty for migration-related reasons in the Asia Pacific region has also increased over the past few years. This study will look at Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, as three of the most popular transit countries that routinely detain large numbers of children in immigration detention centres. Despite the fact that the Convention on the Rights of the Child (to which all three countries are party) emphasises the fact that detention does not serve the best interests of the child and, therefore, should only be used as a last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time (article 37(b)), children nevertheless are routinely detained and then also for long periods of time. This is particularly problematic when children are detained for migration-related reasons, since it never serves the purpose of the best interests of the child (Nowak 2019). This study examines immigration detention centres (IDCs) by analysing from a sociopolitical perspective existing regulations and practices in the three countries selected. Using secondary data, the study addresses two questions, namely, (a) how existing legal and administrative practices of three Asia Pacific (transit/ destination) countries impact children in immigration detention centres; and (b) why these countries fail to uphold international obligations regarding the best interests of children in IDCs. The article argues that adverse administrative practices and the absence of domestic legal frameworks on children in IDCs contradict numerous international obligations. Not only does this jeopardise the survival and development of children, but it also creates barriers for these children to access fundamental human rights, social justice and other entitlements. Key words: children; best interests; deprived of liberty; detention; immigration law